Hiding the Extra Baby Weight Is a 'Cinch!'

Like most new moms, after the arrival of your beautiful baby you are on cloud nine with an undeniable sense of love. Until you notice that postpartum bulge.

There’s some help on the way with the Cinch, an abdominal wrap designed to help suck in your midsection and regain your waistline. It’s like a girdle only softer, way more comfy and with just the right amount of support to remind you how to properly hold your core, post-baby. And it works similarly to how Spanx works — seemingly taking off pounds just by wearing the appropriate under-garment.

Simple, adjustable elastic straps allow for the right fit — you can really tighten the Cinch to suck it in a lot, or keep it at modest tension (which still seems to do the trick too). Wear the Cinch while hanging out in the comforts of home or under loose garments (like a dress) during the day. It can go undetected; I tried wearing it at work for a full day and nobody caught on.

It’s made with a nylon-polyester-Spandex fabric that’s lightweight, breathable, and really smooth (no bulk!). It’s not the most comfortable thing to suck in your gut all day with a wrap around your core, but it really does help you retrain your stomach muscles and focus on getting back your pre-pregnancy waistline.

Cinch is made by Anew and retails for $89 but CBB readers can enter code CBBCinch at checkout for a 15% discount on all products, good through October 20.

I’m planning on getting some type of binder for post-partum. I get how most of the work– I can’t picture how this one works. I’ve look through the their website, and there’s only one picture showing it on, and it doesn’t look that comfortable.

acidstars9
on September 20th, 2009

Is there some other type of similar product that works? $89 seems a little ridiculous.

Jen
on September 20th, 2009

Is there not enough pressure already on new moms to get back into shape without needing to literally SUCK IN their post-partum belly with an uncomfortable device like this? We have enough to worry about when we give birth to a baby, for goodness sake. Let new moms spend their time and attention on mothering and falling in love with their babies. This product makes me want to shout WE ARE GOOD ENOUGH. AS WE ARE! Sorry but I just had to comment. This kind of product makes me crazy.

millefleur
on September 20th, 2009

“It’s not the most comfortable thing to suck in your gut all day with a wrap around your core” says the reviewer. It’s so sad that we live in a society that creates this kind of pressure.

I’m with you Jen. You said it all. A new mom has just spent 9 months being pregnant, delivered a baby, and is living with a newborn. Why not focus on that and just be as normal and beautiful as you are, naturally?

eva
on September 20th, 2009

Lately everything is pressure this and pressure that.Sorry but I don’t get it.I am certain there are many women who would buy something like this (not me)because they consider their figure to be very important.Should their needs and wants be ingored by the market because other women who are not interested on vanity feel pressured or insulted?Are they all brainwashed into caring about their looks or could it actually be that they want to look a certain way for their own reasons? If you don’t want to put this thin on then don’t and move on,let other people buy what they think they need.

ecl
on September 20th, 2009

What would their own reasons be, Eva? Of course, they are bowing to pressure from society. Who wants to have flat abs for any other reason? Maybe we can be understanding of how powerful that pressure is and not judge them, but when people say they do things such as get implants “for themself” it makes me want to laugh. Beauty standards are socially constructed, they don’t just come out of personal preferences. This new-ish obession with flat abs is especially obviously due to social pressure since we have seen it come along pretty recently.

eva
on September 20th, 2009

So then, by that logic ecl all the decisions a woman takes about her body are influenced and dictated by everything except their own desire? Man,I must be a dumb and vapid receptacle for advertisement and publicity everytime I go to the gym to slim down a little bit.But I guess in your mind I am just conforming to standards instead of doing it for myself. I know beauty standards are socially construced,I am a certified Anthropologist and yet I might be naive enough to think that someone out there can take a decision for her own good and enjoyment.There is something called agency,and by denying that women with a desire to look slim are doing it for the reasons just cited you are taking away agency away from them.

Sarah
on September 20th, 2009

I used both a Bella band and Spanx during the post-partum period with my son. I liked the idea of sucking everything back in where it should be, and it made me more comfortable having my flabby belly covered while lifting my shirt for breastfeeding. I don’t think women necessarily feel pressured by society to wear these, but I was more comfortable with one. I much preferred the Bella band to the Spanx, which was hot and cut into my skin.

Carol M.
on September 20th, 2009

I wouldn’t say I feel pressure to look slim or my best from society or any other source, but I know I like to. I eat healthy, exercise, and take care of myself. I also love style and fashion and never leave the house looking like a mess.

I do so for myself, my family, and to teach my children to have pride in themselves. The pride that comes from being responsible and taking care of themselves, their things, their family, their friends, their community, and their planet.

I seriously think that people are reading too much into these products. If it’s not for you, that’s fine…but others find them helpful. And there’s no reason to feel insecure about it. Everyone is different. If you don’t comfortable with yourself, it’s not anyone else’s place (or CBB reviews) to change it. It starts from within!

ecl
on September 20th, 2009

Eva, I know the word agency. I’m a sociologist. And if you are really an anthropologist then you would know that yes, beauty standards are actually dictated by society. And buying into those standards doesn’t make you a vapid receptacle. It means 1. you sucumb to intense pressures just like everyone else 2. preferences are shaped – society’s preferences become one’s one preferences 3. women know the ways in which they are valued by this society – this is just another path to success, making them agents. How can you be an anthropologist and believe in total free will?

MZ
on September 21st, 2009

I heard if you have a c-section these aren’t recommended until at least 6 weeks post-partum.

Stephanie
on September 21st, 2009

I brought the Cinch for my friend who had a baby one year ago. In many cultures in Europe and Asia, I read women bind their stomachs to get back to health quicker. Imagine ladies, after your baby is out you have an empty cavity where the baby used to be. Everything is loose. The Cinch will help hold everything together while your body is recovering.

I was very surprised to see my friend three weeks later after she used the Cinch. She was so happy and thanked me because she lost 2 pants sizes. I could not believe the results!!! I asked her how she did it. She told me she was able to wear the Cinch all day and night because it was so comfortable and adjustable.

She saw the Cinch as a healthy way to get back to shape. It motivated her to be her best.

My sister in law just had baby girl 1 week ago. I will be giving the Cinch as a way to let her know that I care about her. The Cinch to me is a way to give attention to the mom and her health.

They say if you bind your stomach after birth , you get the best results.

Cheers!

Summer
on September 21st, 2009

I agree with Carol M. 100%

Yvonne
on September 21st, 2009

Stephanie is correct, binding has been used by many cultures around the world for thousands of years as a means to promote post partum health. Binding “holds” everything in place to speed healing, but what is probably the most beneficial part is it helps to reduce swelling and inflamation and that allows the body to heal at a faster rate. It’s kind of the same principle that is used with compression hoisery for leg swelling and veracose veins. Certianly no one who has ever used compression hoisery would ever argue they were a vanity item!

I’ve never used this product, I have a different binder I use. It is definately not a vanity item for me. When I deliver my next child in a few weeks I won’t fit into my size 2 skinny jeans even wearing my binder, I’ll be wearing my smaller maternity pants I used at the beginning of my pregnancy. However with my previous children, the combination of gaining the idea amount of weight during pregnancy and a sensible diet, light activity and the use of a binder post partum had me back in them 12 weeks after delivery. (And for a referance point, I’m petite and a size 2 is my normal size without starving myself or living on a treadmill. I don’t want anyone to get the impression that because I’m small I’m brainwashed by the media into thinking my size is normal for everyone and I’m diluting myself into thinking a binder isn’t a vanity item.)

eternalcanadian
on September 21st, 2009

Is that the product Brooke Burke developed? I seem to recall somewhere that she came up with a product like Spanx for post-partum bodies.

Bug
on September 21st, 2009

I have to say I’d be pretty offended if I had just given birth and someone gave this to me as a gift! Way to say “get your flabby stomach back up to society’s standards woman!” instead of “congratulations on your new baby”. Disgusting.

rachel
on September 21st, 2009

My daughter is approaching seven months, and six weeks after my c-section I wore the Cinch daily. I sing the Cinch’s praises!

Personally, I want to be fit for my health, not only my appearance. I feel amazing when I am agile, have energy and my muscles are tone. The Cinch is not the answer alone, healthy eating habits, frequent exercise in combination with the Cinch are where the results are seen. This is a product that has a sublime fit and created by a mom with medical degrees.

acidstars9
on September 23rd, 2009

ecl, it is true that society tells us what is attractive and not attractive (although people’s idea of what is attractive can be different from this sometimes), but by your logic, apparently no one should do anything to take care of themselves and feel attractive. It is normal to want to fit into society, as we are social animals. I understand if you are trying to make a point about very high standards for women’s looks, but many women liked their figure before pregnancy and would like to keep it. Many women just want to look good and feel good about themselves, what is wrong with that?

Angela(25yr. old mommy of 2)
on September 23rd, 2009

Well, I have 2 children, and I want this product because I am sick of people asking me when I am due. I have been trying to loose the weight I just have no time. I want to feel better about me when I look in the mirror. All this going back and forth isn’t helping anyone, and honestly if you both have degrees, then why are you both online arguing like children?

Rosanna
on January 9th, 2010

I hate to see women just taking everything so negatively, maybe the way this is advertised it looks like is just for looks and be skinny, but the truth is after birth our bodies are out of balance and we suffer from back pains, cramps, and more, biding ourselves helps the body heal better and supports our backs which is needed when you are holding your baby, don’t see it as pressure to be skinny see it as a benefit for ouselves, regarding what type of product you use

Vania
on February 8th, 2010

The cincher is extremely healthy when not worn by compulsive trend-followers; it’s important NOT to view such devices per social schema. In my fifth pregnancy, and such devices provide just enough healthy, consistent pressure to help the uterus shrink and contract, decreasing recovery time for both vaginal and cesarean deliveries. This helps decrease bleeding, which improves health as suffering from anemia which can lead to fatigue and depression. I recommend wearing such devices low, around the hips. Remember, even with vaginal deliveries there is scar tissue, so any decrease in blood loss and reversion to a healthy-shaped uterus also aids with bladder control and increases pleasure during intercourse if you resume it after 6 weeks of wearing the device. I continue to wear mine for the first 9 months after vaginal deliveries, gradually increasing compression (not for shape!) with each month, which also helps rid the body of excess water that often contributes to post-partum edema (swelling); doing so rid me of my hypertension. Wearing it while sleeping, if you gradually increase support, and not wearing it during the day after the first two months, helps the core muscles regain strength to support the spine, but at night helps put more healthy pressure on the uterus. It’s also a great discipline to keep your shoulders back because your lower core will remain stable and you’ll look and feel funny if you slouch as you normally would if you weren’t wearing any devices. So, it’s an overall core trainer and uterine device. That’s how you have to look at these things. However, if you’re still insecure about your appearance, maybe you shouldn’t have kids. The last thing to consider is breastfeeding helps contract the uterus after delivery, but such contractions can be excruciating, and any bleeding during those contractions make you susceptible to infections. Mild to moderate compression helps ease the pain of these contractions. And any shortage of bleeding is only a good thing.

albert
on October 11th, 2010

I brought the Cinch for my wife for her baby shower. Surprisingly she was not offended. She was very impressed that I thought about her and her needs.
Her family had a tradition about wrapping after baby and her doctor said it was a great idea. Cinch was referred to me by my wife’s OB. Now she feels amazing inside and out. I believe wrapping really has scientific benefit not only beauty. Beauty is within. If it makes my wife happy, hey the whole house is cool.
I would tell all the guys to go out and get your wives The CINCH!!!